Instagram Redesign
Reshaping Social Commerce Post-Pandemic for Gen Z
Instagram Redesign
Reshaping Social Commerce Post-Pandemic for Gen Z
Instagram Redesign
Reshaping Social Commerce Post-Pandemic for Gen Z
Role
UX/UI Designer | Interaction Designer | Product Strategist
Year
2020
Applications
Adobe XD, Photoshop, Gifski, Screenflick
Brief
Instagram Redesign was developed in response to the unprecedented limitations on physical interaction during the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenge was to create a digital experience that kept users socially connected and engaged during a time of isolation, while also addressing the growing reliance on e-commerce.
Overview
When COVID-19 disrupted physical interactions, Instagram became more than a social platform—it became a vital channel for connection and commerce. This project explored how Instagram could evolve to keep users engaged, connected, and supported, transforming it from endless scrolling to a purposeful, personalized tool for social and shopping needs.
Challenge
As lockdowns began, small businesses moved online, and users sought deeper connection in isolation. Instagram’s dual role as a social and commerce platform became essential, but the experience lacked personalization, seamless shopping, and real-time community interaction.
How might we transform Instagram to meet users’ evolving needs for connection and commerce while maintaining its social essence?
Design Approach
To address the challenges brought by the pandemic, I focused on three key opportunities to evolve Instagram’s experience. Each design decision was guided by the goal of making Instagram feel more personal, purposeful, and connected during a time of global isolation.
1. Reimagining the Feed:
Casual users, business owners, and creators each wanted different things from their Instagram feed. My solution? Let them decide. Instead of a one-size-fits-all homepage, I introduced a top navigation bar with three distinct tabs— Following, Explore, and Video.
Following: A friend-centered feed for social connection.
Explore: A customizable, topic-driven discovery experience.
Video: Focused on live and short-form content in response to surging demand.
Challenge
As lockdowns began, small businesses moved online, and users sought deeper connection in isolation. Instagram’s dual role as a social and commerce platform became essential, but the experience lacked personalization, seamless shopping, and real-time community interaction.
How might we transform Instagram to meet users’ evolving needs for connection and commerce while maintaining its social essence?
This empowered users to see what mattered most, aligning with both emotional and practical needs during social distancing.
2. Seamless Social Shopping:
Small businesses, unable to rely on in-person customers, saw Instagram as their primary storefront. But buying from Instagram felt clunky. I envisioned a seamless social shopping experience integrated directly into the feed, where users could explore products without breaking their social rhythm.
View product images and read tips and reviews with a simple tap on the shopping icon.
Explore additional products in the seller’s profile shopping tab.
This allowed social discovery to flow smoothly into e-commerce, creating a community where brands and buyers could connect more naturally even in transactions.
Design Approach
To address the challenges brought by the pandemic, I focused on three key opportunities to evolve Instagram’s experience. Each design decision was guided by the goal of making Instagram feel more personal, purposeful, and connected during a time of global isolation.
To address the challenges brought by the pandemic, I focused on three key opportunities to evolve Instagram’s experience. Each design decision was guided by the goal of making Instagram feel more personal, purposeful, and connected during a time of global isolation.
1. Reimagining the Feed:
Casual users, business owners, and creators each wanted different things from their Instagram feed. My solution? Let them decide. Instead of a one-size-fits-all homepage, I introduced a top navigation bar with three distinct tabs— Following, Explore, and Video.
1. Reimagining the Feed:
Casual users, business owners, and creators each wanted different things from their Instagram feed. My solution? Let them decide. Instead of a one-size-fits-all homepage, I introduced a top navigation bar with three distinct tabs— Following, Explore, and Video.
Following: A friend-centered feed for social connection.
Explore: A customizable, topic-driven discovery experience.
Video: Focused on live and short-form content in response to surging demand.
This empowered users to see what mattered most, aligning with both emotional and practical needs during social distancing.
Usability Testing
Given the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote mobile testing was the most practical approach. With limited resources, I opted for the Screen Sharing via Mobile Apps method using Zoom to observe user interactions in real time.
However, this method came with trade-offs. While I could see interactions on the device, I couldn't fully observe participants’ facial expressions or hand gesture, which are often key indicators of confusion or delight. To compensate, I relied on follow-up questions to capture their emotional responses and thoughts.
Following: A friend-centered feed for social connection.
Explore: A customizable, topic-driven discovery experience.
Video: Focused on live and short-form content in response to surging demand.
This empowered users to see what mattered most, aligning with both emotional and practical needs during social distancing.
3. Real-Time Engagement:
As isolation became the norm, Instagram needed to foster a sense of togetherness. Static comment sections just didn’t capture that feeling of being with others in real time.
Introduced bullet comments—animated, fleeting interactions that flew across the screen in real time, allowing users to react in sync with live events or content.
This feature brought a new layer of engagement, turning passive viewing into a shared experience, almost as if they were sitting beside friends.
Design Refinements
1. Search Page:
Redesigned with a recommendation algorithm, providing personalized results based on user behavior and interests, making discovery feel curated.
Feedback Iteration
The feedback on the proposed features was generally positive, with users appreciating the ease of navigation and the personalized content experience.
Yet, the testing also revealed several unexpected insights that were outside the scope of the prototypes but crucial to improving the overall user experience:
Search Page: Users found search purpose unclear with Explore moved to the homepage.
Shopping Page: Users described the shopping existing tabs as uncategorized and difficult to navigate.
2. Seamless Social Shopping:
Small businesses, unable to rely on in-person customers, saw Instagram as their primary storefront. But buying from Instagram felt clunky. I envisioned a seamless social shopping experience integrated directly into the feed, where users could explore products without breaking their social rhythm.
View product images and read tips and reviews with a simple tap on the shopping icon.
Explore additional products in the seller’s profile shopping tab.
This allowed social discovery to flow smoothly into e-commerce, creating a community where brands and buyers could connect more naturally even in transactions.
2. Shopping Page:
Reorganized into clear categories—Women, Men, Lifestyle—with wishlist functionality for intuitive browsing.
3. Real-Time Engagement:
As isolation became the norm, Instagram needed to foster a sense of togetherness. Static comment sections just didn’t capture that feeling of being with others in real time.
Introduced bullet comments—animated, fleeting interactions that flew across the screen in real time, allowing users to react in sync with live events or content.
This feature brought a new layer of engagement, turning passive viewing into a shared experience, almost as if they were sitting beside friends.
What’s Next?
While I was not able to see this design through fully to implementation, the next steps would involve several critical actions to ensure the concept's viability:
Additional User Testing: Conduct another round of testing to validate improvements made to the shopping and search functionalities.
Development Preparation: Finalize the design documentation and prepare for handoff to the development team to begin implementation.
Key Takeaway
The pandemic was a pivotal moment that reinforced the importance of agility in digital design. As user behaviors shifted dramatically towards online interactions, it became clear that platforms must evolve rapidly to remain relevant. This experience taught me the value of designing with adaptability in mind—crafting solutions that not only meet current needs but can also scale with future changes.
The challenges of remote testing also highlighted the importance of flexibility in the design process, ensuring that user feedback is accurately captured and integrated, regardless of the circumstances.
Ultimately, this project deepened my understanding of how critical it is for digital experiences to stay responsive to ever-evolving user expectations.
Usability Testing
Given the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote mobile testing was the most practical approach. With limited resources, I opted for the Screen Sharing via Mobile Apps method using Zoom to observe user interactions in real time.
However, this method came with trade-offs. While I could see interactions on the device, I couldn't fully observe participants’ facial expressions or hand gesture, which are often key indicators of confusion or delight. To compensate, I relied on follow-up questions to capture their emotional responses and thoughts.
3. Real-Time Engagement:
As isolation became the norm, Instagram needed to foster a sense of togetherness. Static comment sections just didn’t capture that feeling of being with others in real time.
Introduced bullet comments—animated, fleeting interactions that flew across the screen in real time, allowing users to react in sync with live events or content.
This feature brought a new layer of engagement, turning passive viewing into a shared experience, almost as if they were sitting beside friends.
Bullet comments created an instant sense of unity, bridging the gap that physical distance had created. And while seemingly small, this addition proved powerful, making users feel like part of a larger conversation.
Usability Testing
Given the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote mobile testing was the most practical approach. With limited resources, I opted for the Screen Sharing via Mobile Apps method using Zoom to observe user interactions in real time.
However, this method came with trade-offs. While I could see interactions on the device, I couldn't fully observe participants’ facial expressions or hand gesture, which are often key indicators of confusion or delight. To compensate, I relied on follow-up questions to capture their emotional responses and thoughts.
Feedback Iteration
The feedback on the proposed features was generally positive, with users appreciating the ease of navigation and the personalized content experience.
Yet, the testing also revealed several unexpected insights that were outside the scope of the prototypes but crucial to improving the overall user experience:
Search Page: Users found search purpose unclear with Explore moved to the homepage.
Shopping Page: Users described the shopping existing tabs as uncategorized and difficult to navigate.
Design Refinements
1. Search Page:
Redesigned with a recommendation algorithm, providing personalized results based on user behavior and interests, making discovery feel curated.
Design Refinements
1. Search Page:
Redesigned with a recommendation algorithm, providing personalized results based on user behavior and interests, making discovery feel curated.
2. Shopping Page:
Reorganized into clear categories—Women, Men, Lifestyle—with wishlist functionality for intuitive browsing.
2. Shopping Page:
Reorganized into clear categories—Women, Men, Lifestyle—with wishlist functionality for intuitive browsing.
What’s Next?
While I was not able to see this design through fully to implementation, the next steps would involve several critical actions to ensure the concept's viability:
Additional User Testing: Conduct another round of testing to validate improvements made to the shopping and search functionalities.
Development Preparation: Finalize the design documentation and prepare for handoff to the development team to begin implementation.
What’s Next?
While I was not able to see this design through fully to implementation, the next steps would involve several critical actions to ensure the concept's viability:
Additional User Testing: Conduct another round of testing to validate improvements made to the shopping and search functionalities.
Development Preparation: Finalize the design documentation and prepare for handoff to the development team to begin implementation.
Key Takeaway
The pandemic was a pivotal moment that reinforced the importance of agility in digital design. As user behaviors shifted dramatically towards online interactions, it became clear that platforms must evolve rapidly to remain relevant. This experience taught me the value of designing with adaptability in mind—crafting solutions that not only meet current needs but can also scale with future changes.
The challenges of remote testing also highlighted the importance of flexibility in the design process, ensuring that user feedback is accurately captured and integrated, regardless of the circumstances.
Ultimately, this project deepened my understanding of how critical it is for digital experiences to stay responsive to ever-evolving user expectations.
2. Seamless Social Shopping:
Small businesses, unable to rely on in-person customers, saw Instagram as their primary storefront. But buying from Instagram felt clunky. I envisioned a seamless social shopping experience integrated directly into the feed, where users could explore products without breaking their social rhythm.
View product images and read tips and reviews with a simple tap on the shopping icon.
Explore additional products in the seller’s profile shopping tab.
This allowed social discovery to flow smoothly into e-commerce, creating a community where brands and buyers could connect more naturally even in transactions.
Related work
